Liberals raise bar on openness and transparency by proactively making expenses public

OTTAWA– Liberals, at work in Ottawa despite prorogation, are continuing to take concrete steps to increase openness and transparency in Parliament by publicly disclosing their expenses online, said Liberal House Leader, Dominic LeBlanc, and Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, James Cowan, in a press release Sept. 19.

“Liberals are leading the way with immediate, meaningful changes that bring greater openness and transparency to Parliament,” said Mr. LeBlanc. “Despite being blocked by the NDP in the House of Commons, we are moving ahead with our plan to make our travel and hospitality expenses available publicly and online.”

This month’s expenses will be made public later this fall, with quarterly updates to follow. Proactive disclosure is a key element of Liberal Party of Canada Leader Justin Trudeau’s Open Parliament Plan, which would require all Members of Parliament and Senators to disclose their expenses, mandate the Auditor General to conduct regular performance audits of both the House of Commons and Senate administrations, and make meetings of the Board of Internal Economy of the House of Commons public.

“Canadians expect and deserve accountability, and the Liberals are the only party taking the extra step to publicly disclose their expenses,” said Senator Cowan. “Openness and transparency is a fundamental priority for Liberals, and we will continue to use every tool at our disposal to aggressively pursue this in Parliament.”